The Senators had no choice but to fire HC D.J. Smith

This was not a shock to anyone who has followed the Senators. What made the situation shocking was that Smith held practice Monday before the Senators game on Tuesday against the Arizona Coyotes.

Ottawa — which has not made the playoffs since the 2016-17 season — expected to at least make the postseason this season. However, the Senators are last in the Eastern Conference with an 11-15 record under Smith, so something had to give eventually. 

As the season dragged on, Smith's seat got a little warmer with each passing game. Adding Jacques Martin as a special advisor to the coaching staff did not calm the waters either. In fact, it may have made things worse. 

Smith could have been jettisoned three weeks ago, after a 5-0 loss to the Florida Panthers, but president of hockey operations and interim general manager Steve Staios remained patient. 

Turmoil swirled around the team earlier this season, when Senators restricted free agent Shane Pinto remained unsigned and then received a 41-game suspension from the league for "activities relating to sports wagering.” 

On Nov. 1, Pierre Dorion resigned as GM following a league investigation that caused the team to forfeit a first-round draft pick.

Subsequently, new team owner Michael Andlauer slammed the NHL for its handling of the Pinto investigation and for the fallout from the docking of the draft pick.

The additional chaos of a head-coaching won't help, but in the end, this was the right decision for the team and Smith.